The most important in achieving your goals is the setting step: don’t set long-term goals with short-term results expectations!
Happy New Year folks!
I hope you all had a fantastic time spent with friends and family relaxing and eating well. Now that we are in January it’s that time of year when the resolutions are made and you decide you are going to get in shape and become the very best version of yourself.
However, in order to actually achieve your new goals and more importantly maintain them there are a number of things to consider and today I’ll go through a few points I tell all my clients in order to keep them on track and keep them progressing.
1. Set smaller achievable goals
Now I totally understand that right now with motivation being sky-high you want to dream big and reach for the stars. Lose 10kg, drop 2 dress sizes, increase your bench by 50kg, knock 5 minutes off your 10k time, etc.
There’s nothing to say that these goals aren’t achievable however, you need to realize that these are all long-term goals. These may take months or even years to achieve depending on how things go. The problem then is it is very hard to stay focused and motivated when your goal seems so far out of reach.
What I therefore suggest is having smaller goals that will pave the way towards your ultimate big goal. Now you don’t need to absolutely nail every one of these but I can guarantee no matter what your goal is trying to achieve as many of these as possible will help you to be fitter, healthier and stronger.
Small goal examples:
Increase your protein intake to around 1g per pound of bodyweight or more. This will help with muscle growth and recovery, appetite suppression, boosts metabolism, assists with fat loss and loads more
Aim to have fruit and veg with every meal.
Minimize less healthy foods and alcohol from your diet.
Create a healthy sleep routine (Aim for around 7-9 hours per night).
Aim to strength train at least 3 times per week and aim to do some sort of activity every day (walk, jog, swim, yoga, etc.).
Drink plenty of water (around 3-4 liters per day minimum).
Plan your meals ahead of time as much as possible so you know you will be eating more regularly and you’re not in the position of needing to grab whatever is on hand to eat and drink.
2. Don’t rely on motivation
There are a few phrases I say again and again to clients and one of the main ones is “Action over motivation”.
Now I know at the minute you are focused, in the zone, ready to take on whatever life throws at you, hoora! But trust me this will pass.
Motivation is similar to an emotion and you can’t rely on it. None of us are happy or sad all the time, just like motivation it comes and goes. Therefore, what you need to do is put good habits and systems in place. Like: preparing the following day’s meals and snacks ahead of time and go even when you can’t be bothered, getting an early night so that you are well-rested, plan when you will train each day around your schedule, and most importantly TAKE ACTION.
You need to get into the habit of getting these things done. Don’t think about it, don’t procrastinate. Don’t think could I do it later just get up and take action. This is one of the hardest things to do but will also bring real long-term results.
3. Be prepared for setbacks
Now at the moment you probably aren’t even considering that anything will get in the way and stop you from achieving your goals. But, trust me, there will be plenty of things that life will throw at you. Work, relationships, friends, family, illness, injury, Covid, the list is endless.
If you let these things get to you and let them stop you then you will never achieve your goals, that is a promise. I can guarantee for many of you this is why you haven’t achieved them in the past. Because life has got hard, you think well that’s totally messed everything up, I give up.
This is the time when you need to find solutions and do what you can with what you have, that’s all you ever can do. If you are trying as hard as possible and doing everything you possibly can you will still make progress. It may not be “perfect” but that’s ok. Something is always better than nothing (I say that A LOT). Don’t ever forget that. A 20 min jog is better than sitting on the sofa for example work to find solutions to whatever life throws at you.
4. Avoid fads
Now I don’t want to offend anyone with this but all of these quick fix diet fads need to be avoided. I totally understand that everyone wants results as fast as possible. But the problem with these juice/shake/meal replacement diets is that they are not sustainable long term. This is why so many people fail and then rebound massively because they have been too restrictive.
Studies have shown around 40% of people end up gaining more weight than they lost when they follow a drastic weight loss diet.
It’s not exciting and won’t happen overnight but the key to any diet is finding something you can stick to long term and can become part of your lifestyle. This means having a good relationship with your food and drink so you can remain healthy whilst still living your life enjoying some less healthy foods without guilt. This is a very hard balance to find and does take time, dedication and commitment, but ultimately it will get the long term results you are after.
I hope you have found this useful and have managed to take a few things away from it. If you have any further questions on anything health and fitness related drop me a message on my Insta or Facebook and I’ll help in any way I can.
Good luck achieving your goals in and out of the gym this year!
Thanks for reading,
Gordie Adam
Professional Natural Bodybuilder
Powerhouse Fitness Sponsored Athlete
